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The European Commission and the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) have just launched a joint platform to help high-speed broadband reach all European regions, notably rural and sparsely populated areas.

The members of the platform from the European Commission and the Committee of the Regions will meet twice a year to address issues that hamper the connectivity of underserviced areas. The topics of discussion will include policy and governance, technology, regulatory framework and financial opportunities. The inaugural meeting will also discuss WiFi4EU, an initiative which will provide free wireless connectivity in public spaces everywhere in Europe.

Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society, said: “Broadband coverage can happen only if people on the ground are fully involved. We need the regions on board so to understand what their real investment needs are. We need to understand what obstacles they encounter and how we, the Commission, can help tackling them. The Broadband Platform with the Committee of the Regions will be instrumental for providing policy-makers with valuable and informed input about the reality on the ground, a bottom-up policy process that will provide European regions with ownership of their connectivity development.”